I Think We're Alone Now

Doesn't seem to be anyone around... Between the killer heat wave and the still-missing drawing with engineering stamp, work seems to have ground to a halt. I've offered up my scary litigator husband, my sparkly flip-flops (which, along with my super-charming self worked before with the City), and my "This Book Belongs To..." library stamp to use on plans, but our contractor stills believes he has the matter under control. Which I'm sure he does.

I've been picking out finish materials right and left (fun!), the roof is done or just about done, and the washing machine and dryer are supposed to be re-connected (temporarily) again today (which is good because we've got a full-blown laundry crisis going at this point). I'm off to sort laundry...

I'm Melting!

This heat wave stuff is really getting out of hand. 114? 112? 110? Today was a mere 102 or so, felt cooler, which is completely ridiculous. Virtually everything mechanical is no longer working, including, of course, our 1970 Montgomery Ward air conditioner compressor. I would be more grateful that it's broken, thus justifying its replacement, except I'm now living in a sweat lodge. My computer isn't working, my cell phone is barely working. And so it goes.

A little bit of construction work is occurring. We're still waiting for the designer's engineer-approved drawings clarifying the minor points raised by the City Inspector. I'm mad, the contractor's mad ... I'm letting him handle it, since he has already shown greater patience and ability in this particular area than I have. The roof guys have given up completely, which is a good thing, since it's about a billion degrees up there and I don't want them falling off the roof in the throes of heat stroke. The plumbers showed up and did some rough ins. The carpenters got rid of the extra wall in the bathroom.

The cabinets arrive tomorrow! Perhaps they'll bring cooler weather from Oregon along with the boxes? I can only hope.

Photos of Suri Cruise Here!

I'm kidding, of course. It's the lost photos from yesterday. Enjoy!

Today, it's nearly noon and no one is here. It was nice to sleep in a bit. I guess it's a Friday holiday for all of us. I also understand that the project is being delayed because promised additional drawings for the city have not been delivered. Or so I'm told.

Sittin' By The Dock Of The Bay

I really really tried to upload a picture of the bay window to no avail, maybe tomorrow. As far as work today, the guys did some insulating and built the little roof part that goes over the outside. I am so pleased with this window. It will provide a nice little reading nook, it makes the tiny room seem more light and spacious, and it adds architectural interest and style to the front of the house.

I also tried to include a picture of the tube skylight in the hall. This thing lets in light like nobody's business (they punched the hole through today, yesterday it was still dark). I'm pleased with the idea of free light in the hall (the contractor says we'll never turn on the hall fixture again and I'm pretty sure he's right), but I'm not so pleased with the size of the circle on the ceiling. I thought it would be smaller. I'll focus on the free light part.

Our third and final MIA picture is the side French doors, opposite our master bedroom, side of the dining room portion of the great room. I'm not really that happy with these at all. They look awkward to me (too narrow) and since they were custom, I think they weren't cheap. Our contractor mentioned at the beginning of demo that we didn't have a window schedule and I thought he would make one and let me pick everything out. Instead, he has picked everything, mostly OK (especially since we had to go with the cheaper windows, less choice anyway), but I would have preferred more control over the situation. These particular doors are probably the best that could have been done under the circumstances (except perhaps make the opening slightly smaller for a single door? which I would have preferred) and I'm going to focus on the lovely fountain that will be installed on the wall next to them. Mmmmm, I'm more relaxed already.

Roofers were here today as well, banging and tossing stuff around. Since it was about 100 million degrees today, they packed it in early, came back in the evening when it cooled down a bit. Can't blame 'em at all for that!

I Can See Clearly Now

More window action! Yesterday (I missed today's photos as we dashed off to a swim meet), the large great room slider and the kitchen window were installed, as well as the kids' rooms and the front window pictured here. Unfortunately, we encountered a bit of an inspection delay in other areas, but a new drawing is forthcoming and all will be well. Also unfortunately, part of the front window doesn't slide smoothly, but our contractor is already in contact with the manufacturer and it will be repaired.

Today was another huge day, the side great room doors were installed, as was the bay window in the front room which will become my office/guest bedroom. (Photo tomorrow, I promise!) I feel so good about insisting on the bay, it makes a tiny room feel so much more light and spacious. The tube skylight was installed in the entry hall, not quite collapsing the ceiling in the process (sometimes it would be a lot better not to be around for this stuff!).

The tree was removed and the stump ground.

Even more fun, I went on a tile shopping expedition and selected some beautiful tile for the kitchen and bathrooms and some cork for the laundry room. Nice!

And about that swim meet: big girl surpassed herself and did us super proud. 3 for 3 best times, including two honor times (a standard she hadn't met before). One of those times was in butterfly and she took nearly 4 seconds off her time. She also participated in two relays which totally burned up the lanes. Naturally, she shrugged it off. I say, you go girl! Little girl also did well. While she didn't get any best times, her strokes are improving and she stepped in at the last minute and swam the first leg of the free relay (at nearly 9 pm) with speed and aplomb. I'm very proud of her for that, too!

Windows to the Soul

If one's eyes are windows to the soul, then what are one's windows? Are the windows the house's eyes? Then would its windows still be windows to its soul? Assuming it has one, although it apparently has a heart (the kitchen, naturally). Right now, our windows are more like nostrils, since several of them are gone, temporarily covered by plywood. OK, enough poor analogies and anthropomorphizing of the house.

The windows should arrive and be installed tomorrow. I'm very excited about this. The old windows were the original 1970 variety, single pane (leaky and mildewy these days) with steel flanges and frames, not very attractive or energy efficient. While we didn't spring for the really swanky windows we wanted, the new ones will be very nice. Had to do a lot of moving in the kids' bedrooms but the new windows are going to be much larger than the old ones (due to changed egress requirements, extra safety fine with me) which will be quite nice. Eventually, I hope to install benches under them to create a window seat effect. In the new office we are putting in a bay window to give the effect of more space to the very small room.

Clarified a few details with the contractor. Pocket door does need to be framed. Interior French doors will be glass.

Getting a couple of tree bids tomorrow, thanks everyone who helped out with some names of tree guys.

City Building Inspector was on site, everything seemed fine. It's wonderful to have a contractor who's on good terms with them and doing a great job on everything so it's not a big issue.

Other than that, it's hot hot hot again. Since the window holes are boarded over, I turned the AC on. It was 93 degrees inside the house at the time, hours later, we're still in the 80s, but the situation is improving.

While You Were Out

A couple of years ago, my husband went on a boondoggle trip out of the country for a week. I spent several weeks before he left trying to convince him (in a highly subtle manner, naturally) that I'd arranged for the TLC show "While You Were Out" to come and redo our family room while he was away. He never bought it. And they weren't really coming. And if someone had done that to me, I probably wouldn't have liked it very much, since I'm a tad persnickety about what I like and don't like. OK, more than a tad.

While we were out, lots and lots of progress was made on our project. Most notably, the roof trusses were delivered and installed and a ton o' roof framing was completed. Preparation was made for windows to be installed in many rooms. Check it out: new "Great Room," view from the new kitchen, long view from the endge of the back garden.

Violin Camp

We're back! We had a great time at what we call "violin camp" (more properly called Suzuki Institute). The girls learned a lot (especially the big one, this year), as did I. I'm a Suzuki mom, cellist, and sometime string teacher, not to mention an avid observer of humans in relationship, so camp gives me lots to chew on for quite a while to come. I'll be pondering (perhaps in the blog, perhaps not) the nature of competition, types of communication (including the classic topic: music as international language), diverse learning styles, diverse parenting styles, diverse teaching styles, the genius of Dr. Suzuki, the difficulties of being a disciple once the Master has passed on, "nurtured by love" and its practical application, possible new practice strategies and schedules for our family, and whether peace is sustainable in any form. Not bad for four days.

Pantries and Plumbing and Plywood: Oh My!

As a preliminary matter, let me state for the record that it is too darned hot, we've had way too many swim meets of late, and I feel grimy, cranky, and pretty much unfit for human interaction. So what else is new, right? On top of that, my computer is still dead and the people in Mumbai are not taking my calls at the moment, so the stars of this blog -- the fab photos -- are still missing in action. Sorry 'bout that. (I'm still taking them, so they'll be posted when this ridiculous technical difficulty is resolved. Stay tuned!)

Despite the heat, the guys continue to pound on our house. I'm screaming "uncle" already, but the house doesn't seem close to throwing in the towel. Progress continues to be made. The place was swarming with plumbers on Friday and lots of strange pipes are snaking their way around and up all over the place. It seems that the washing machine will be on the right and the dryer on the left in the Temple of Laundry. Just like the plans say. Except everyone who is right handed (like me) and who does laundry constantly (like me) typically puts the washer on the left and the dryer on the right. Oh well. Thanks, designer dude who clearly doesn't do laundry, for yet another instance of complete lack of attention to detail. Oops, did I say that out loud? Frankly, it should be fine in the end. I suspect our swanky new washer and dryer have doors that can swing either way, so we'll adjust as necessary, if possible. If not, I'll adapt, I'm sure.

Ceiling beams, made of pressurized lumber strands, are going up all over. The spaces are beginning to take shape and I'm enjoying walking around imagining actually using them. The view from the new kitchen window and new dining room French doors is going to be amazing. Once we get that otherwise healthy tree out of the way, oops. (You were right on that one, designer dude.)

The pantry wasn't framed quite right the first time (the existing water heater was left in place, but since it's already been replaced by the sexy new tankless one, we planned to use the space the old one was in to expand the pantry, in fact gaining space was one of the main reasons to switch to the tankless model), but the situation has already been rectified and the old water heater temporarily relocated until the new one can be hooked up (several weeks from now, I am told). That was quite a run-on sentence, wasn't it!

We're abandoning the ship tomorrow, heading out of town for a week of camp (violin and traditional day), milestone birthday parties, and blissful hotel residence. Dh is staying home to work, work, work, feed the dogs, hold down the fort, work, and (I hope) snap a few photos for the blog (and accompanying scrapbook).

Swimmer's Ear

If it's not one thing, it's another. Today, it's swimmer's ear. Ouch. The pediatrician who was available seemed to have been a doctor for approximately 5 minutes. Ouch. The ear drops cost $40. Ouch.

And I haven't solved my computer problems, so I can't post any new photos right now. That's a lot less painful than swimmer's ear, though.

I've never been so happy to hear hammers banging away at 7 am as I was today. Let's get rolling again, already. Some sheets of plywood have been put up on the exterior wall frames. More importantly, several large ceiling beams have been installed. I need to speak with our contractor about several items, among them a very nice fruitless mulberry tree which we've decided has to go (it blocks the new French doors and patio) and the location of the exterior faucets and electrical switches.

Houstory

Since we're all on holiday until Wednesday, this seemed like the perfect time to fill in a bit of history.

Dh and I bought our first home in a rather "transitional" neighborhood in Pleasant Hill just a couple of months after we married, using a VA loan. It was a 3 bedroom, 1 bath, 1500 square foot ranch built in 1950 and featured a little white fence, rose bushes and fruit trees, and an overgrown jungle of a backyard.

When we first moved in, we owned almost no furniture, a pile of wedding presents, and a bunch of personal items. We rattled around in the house for years (several of the rooms were virtually empty), which wasn't a problem because we were usually out working or playing. My dh did start taming the backyard and the front beds and discovered in the process a deep love of gardening which has grown to this day. I started minor renovation projects on the interior (mostly wallpaper removal and painting, although I did completely tile the rather large kitchen floor while quite pregnant), which is something I really enjoy. Gradually, we improved the house and began filling it, first with furniture, then with children.

By the time I was pregnant with our third, we'd outgrown the house in almost every way. No more empty rooms, in fact, our two children were sharing a bedroom. The neighborhood elementary school was terribly underperforming (which for a California public school is saying something) and even of questionable safety, so we'd already started our eldest at a lovely, but pricey, little private school nearby. Dh's garden had long grown beyond the bounds of the raised beds in the garden area; during windy storms everyone was well advised to avoid the patio completely as the many pots which lived on the patio's roof cover were known to fly off when the gusts got too big.

The search was on for a bigger place to live. We narrowed our search to three desireable Walnut Creek neighborhoods. We had a tough set of criteria: 4 or more bedrooms; 2 or more bathrooms; large, level lot (very hard to find in Contra Costa County); no pool; top schools; easy commute location; and, of course, not quite enough cash.

We lost out on the first house. Multiple offers, ours over asking price by over $15K, the winner's over by $25K. Yikes.

I saw what is now our house on a Friday before the last weekend we could possibly consider making an offer on any house. I was getting ever huger by the moment. Each house we saw seemed to be more expensive, crummier, and generally less suitable than the last. This one was no exception. Much of it was virtually untouched from the time it was built in 1970. White walls and carpet, dark molding, nasty greenish yellow tile (the hue in the kitchen was particularly vivid). When I walked into the kitchen, I literally burst into tears. The aforementioned "harvest gold" tile was not only ubiquitous, but cracked and damaged. The cabinets were an ugly ugly fake wood laminate over particle board. I looked outside, though, and saw the largest flat lot we had seen to date. It backed up into a hillside covered with trees. It was quiet. I knew if I let dh see it, the house would be ours. Which, of course, is eventually what happened. And the rest, as they say, is houstory.

In Memory of Jackie

In between the swim meet and hosting the sleepover birthday party at the Embassy Suites, I had the pleasure of attending a Celebration of Life service for a friend who recently passed away. It was such a lovely service for so many reasons. It was quite a reunion of folks from my "old" church, many of whom -- including myself -- have scattered to new churches in the area for a variety of reasons. Jackie herself was a truly amazing woman and we really did celebrate her life through stories, letters (many written by Jackie), personal testimony, prayer, song, and even Sikh chanting.

I had to leave after 2 hours (thus shirking my punch serving duties, alas), but if I'd had the time and nerve to speak, I would have told of the incredible way that Jackie and her husband Marsh made me and my children feel so incredibly welcomed and loved, at church and always. When I first arrived at the church where I met Jackie, my oldest was 2-1/2 and my middle was only a couple of months old. He never slept, I was exhausted and depressed and desperately seeking something (faith, friendship, foundation, ???). I enjoyed the worship services I attended and felt very comfortable; they were traditional in style with plenty of inclusivity, which was a nice combination. The music was terrific.

Coffee hour down in the Fellowship Hall after the service was a daunting experience, however. I'd head down there hoping to meet people and would spend the whole time trying to keep my daughter from spilling her juice (happened pretty much every time) or knocking over some elder wobbling across the place with a hot cup of coffee in hand (didn't happen much). The baby would always want to nurse at the most inopportune moments. One day, I glanced over at a table in the corner and a most amazing sight met my eyes. There was an older couple sitting there, sort of holding court, but they were surrounded by children and they were enjoying it.

They called me over. They welcomed me. They were happy I was there. Instead of suggesting that I get my kids under control or that I was a bad and incompetent mommy because my baby never slept, they told me how beautiful my kids were. They never stopped making me feel loved, welcome, and valuable. They sent notes and cards to me and my kids for holidays and birthdays and other occasions.

There were so many other amazing things that Jackie did, and said, and thought, and shared with me and the rest of us lucky enough to know her. But the thing that will always stand foremost in my memory of her is how incredibly loving and accepting and welcoming she always was of my children and of me. For that I will always be incredibly grateful. I also believe in my heart that what Jackie did is exactly what Jesus would have done. I saw the face of God in Jackie and I am blessed.